


Three Minutes Longer

by conceptstage



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-19
Updated: 2018-12-19
Packaged: 2019-09-22 21:13:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 765
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17067230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/conceptstage/pseuds/conceptstage
Summary: Matt mentioned on Talks that Beau was alone on the ship for a few minutes before the others showed up due to the time weirdness inside the ball. This is how I imagine those few minutes would have gone.





	Three Minutes Longer

The world around her changed in a blink. A glowing orb, a flash of light, then she was hit by a different kind of darkness than the chamber they’d just been in. She gasped for breath and looked around at all the sour faces of the crew around her. “Oh fuck,” she exclaimed, reaching up to press a hand against her chest. Her heart felt like it was trying to beat its way out of her chest under her palm. “Is everyone alright?”

She looked behind her and frowned. There was no one behind her. She turned to Orly, who was sitting at the table with a few other members of the crew. The Happy Ball of Fun sat on the table between them. “Where are the others?”

“You’re the first to appear,” Orly said in his deep, heavy drawl. 

Beau marched over to the table and took the ball in her hands. “They’ll be here any second,” she said. “They’ll follow me out.” 

Thirty seconds ticked by. Nothing.

A minute. She started to pace around the room, shaking the ball angrily.

Two minutes. “Fuck! Fuck, fuck, fuck…”

Orly cleared his throat and stood up, waving the rest of the crew out of the room. “Beauregard, perhaps-”

“They’re coming,” she said. Her voice cracked at the end but her eyes narrowed in panic and anger. “They’re coming. I didn't leave them! I didn’t abandon them, I wouldn’t do that!”

“Of course you wouldn’t.”

“They’re coming. They’re fine.”

For another thirty seconds the only sound was the crashing of waves against the boat and movement outside the door. “Beau-”

She started running her fingers over the ball, trying to remember the pattern Caleb had used to open it. “Was it- Was it this one first and then slide… No, it was push this button and slide these at the same time- shit! Fuck!” She lifted the ball up above her head and roared in anger, about the throw the ball against the wall. It lit up briefly in her hands and Caduceus appeared right in front of her. “Ducie!” she exclaimed, dropping the ball in surprise. It clanged against the floor and rolled back to hit her foot. “You’re alive! Where’s everyone else?”

“They’re coming,” he said, panting for breath. He huffed and sat down on the ground, leaning against the wall. 

Beau picked up the ball and sat it back on the table in front of Orly, leaning on her hands against the table and staring at it. “Okay, okay, alight. Come on, come on. What is taking so long!” She turned to Caduceus. “What the hell took you so long, you were gone for minutes! Were you all just dancing around the dragon the whole time?”

“Dragon?” asked Orly at the same time Caduceus frowned and said: “You were only gone for five seconds at the most before I followed you.”

“What? No, I’ve been sitting here-”

The ball lit up again and Fjord appeared beside the table, followed closely by Caleb. “Woah,” Fjord mumbled, looking dizzy and holding onto the table to keep himself up. 

“Where’s Jester?”

Caleb’s eyes widened and he looked between her and the ball. “I didn’t see her. I thought she was already gone.”

Fjord waved his hand. “She’s coming. She was right behind me.”

Ten seconds.

Twenty.

The ball lit up once more and Nott appeared next, instantly reaching out to hold onto the person nearest to her, who happened to be Beau. Nott was bleeding and shaking and held tightly onto Beau’s leg to keep herself on her feet. Beau reached down to gently touch her head but didn’t take her eyes off the sphere.

Ten more seconds. 

Thirty.

Finally it lit up once more and Jester appeared, her face wet with tears and blood and sweat. She threw herself into Beau’s arms and pressed her wet face against her friend’s shoulder. 

“I’m sorry,” Beau whispered, too quiet for even Jester to hear over the blood rushing in her ears. 

Jester took several shaking breaths before pulling away and wiping at her eyes. “Where’s Twiggy?”

They all turned back to the ball. It was another, final twenty seconds before the little gnome appeared. Beau let out a breath and felt as if a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. She had abandoned them. It was her fault that Nott was shivering against her leg from the effort it took to hold herself on her feet and Jester was putting on a brave face. It was her fault. She was never going to leave them alone again.


End file.
